Here is an existential dilemma. They belonged to Bengal till they woke up one morning to find themselves in Jharkhand. Now both the states won't have them. Bengal won't have them because what was their village has submerged under the sea and they have scampered on to chars or new land emerging out of the sea which fall in Jharkhand. Jharkhand won't have them since they have papers that show them belonging to Bengal. And the chars of course will remain without any civic amenities as they are not revenue villages as yet.
It is ironical that bird flu should deal a crippling blow to the West Bengal countryside shortly after the Government of India declared that the country was free from the scourge.
KOLKATA, Feb. 13: School-going children in West Bengal are more prone to get addicted to tobacco products. Thanks to the lack of awareness among people in these parts about the dangers of tobacco use. This was revealed by a voluntary organisation, West Bengal Voluntary Health Association (WBVHA) this afternoon who have been engaged by the Union health ministry to spread awareness about the ill-effects of tobacco.
KOLKATA, Feb. 11: Experts from Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) today visited bird flu-affected areas of the state ahead of the review meeting to be held by the state government to discuss lifting the ban on chicken trading and transportation.
bithari village, Swarupnagar block, North 24-Paraganas: the men of Uttarpara hamlet in Bithari are hiding out in the fields every night despite the winter chill in the air. Better brave the cold
Arsenic has been found in groundwater in seven districts of West Bengal covering an area 37,493 km having about 34 million population. Our survey indicates that 560 villages are arsenic-affected and more than a million people are drinking arsenic contaminated water and more than 200,000 people are suffering from arsenic-related diseases.
KOLKATA, Feb 12- The state government today decided to lift from tomorrow the ban on trading and transportation of chicken and eggs imposed on 5 February, except in the 48 blocks and five municipalities where the avian flu had broken out. Poultry products would be allowed in and out of Murshidabad and Birbhum - the first to have been hit by the flu - only from authorised farms, though the ban would continue to be in force in 22 affected blocks in the two districts.
KRISHNAGAR, Feb. 12: At a time when the critically endangered White-rumped Vulture Gyps, who were once a common sight in West Bengal, have indeed made a self-styled effort to be re-colonised in the Banguria forest near Bethuadahari Wildlife Sanctuary (BWS) in Nadia, hectic preparations are on to catch the spotted deer inside the sanctuary for its census after a long gap of seven years.
